Satellite company gets government OK to sell higher-resolution images

DigitalGlobe, the only American provider of high-resolution satellite imagery, announced that it had received permission from the United States Department of Commerce to sell its “highest-quality” images.

DigitalGlobe already has two orbiting satellites that can provide images of 41 cm and 46 cm and will be able to release new images from those satellites immediately. The company has another satellite launch planned for August 2014; that satellite can image objects with a resolution of 31 cm (just over a foot). Under the new government regulations, however, DigitalGlobe won’t be able to sell imagery from the new bird until six months after launch.

The Colorado-based firm is one of the top providers of satellite images to the United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (USNGIA).